As a species, humans are a competitive bunch.

In fact, as far back as we’ve had the ability to record history, we’ve made a point of detailing when we did something — anything — better than our rivals. And why not: Go big or go home, right?

While sports like soccer and basketball account for about 26% of television spending globally, not every competition makes it to a screen near you, so the Penn Lines staff scouted Pennsylvania for some of the more niche competitions. It’s a world where participants eat, chop and hunt their way to victory.

Packing away the pounds

At Bad Boyz Bistro in Bedford, for instance, “no pain, no gain” rings true. There, competitors have one hour to devour a nearly 10-pound meal.

“I make them sign a waiver; if you’re not used to this, you could tear your stomach,” warns owner Bryan Speck, a former member of Bedford Rural Electric Cooperative (REC). “When your body says enough, please say enough. … I had a bride and groom get married, have their reception, come here just to do this challenge and leave in an ambulance.”

“The Terminator” challenge consists of a quadruple stack burger — topped with onion rings, jalapeno peppers, four kinds of cheese, and pulled pork — 2 pounds of fries, and a 40-ounce drink. Anyone who can pack away the pounds within the hour gets the $25 meal for free, a T-shirt and their name on the Wall of Fame.

Visitors come from as far as California and Texas to push the bounds of their stomachs but, according to Speck, only four people have ever completed the gut-busting challenge. As a consolation prize, competitors who can’t stuff it all down in one sitting walk away with enough leftovers for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

“People still love to be able to go to work and say, ‘Guess what I did?’ ” Speck says. “So you have to play into it … it has to be a big thing. When they win, I try to get the whole restaurant to clap because it’s a memory they’re going to take back. They’re going to be at their office standing by the water cooler … and I want them to be able to talk positively about it.”

 

For smaller stomachs, Bad Boyz has a wing challenge, which was featured on the Food Network in 2011. Don’t let those 10 pieces of chicken fool you — the challenge isn’t called “The Hellraiser” for nothing.

“It’s 9 million Scoville [heat units] (SCU) — that’s twice as hot as commercial pepper spray,” notes Speck, adding drinks are not allowed during the 20-minute challenge. “A mild wing is about 50,000 SCU. When we started [the competition], it was right around 3 million SCU. People got used to that, so we stepped it up a little bit. … I could step it up to 17 million SCU — there are ingredients out there I could buy to do that — but once you pass 150,000 SCU, it’s a totally different world: You immediately start to feel [the spice], your nose starts to run, your eyes start to tear up.”

That hasn’t stopped regulars or first-timers from putting their tongues to the fire, so to speak. Speck, who has operated Bad Boyz for 15 years, says he usually has two Hellraiser challengers a week in the summer and at least one every two weeks in the winter. Like The Terminator competition, those who successfully conquer The Hellraiser challenge get a T-shirt, their meal paid for and bragging rights. The contest has about a 30% success rate, he says, and that’s fine with him.

“Ninety-five percent of the folks who try it say they never want to see them again,” Speck says with a laugh. “My theory that I tell everyone is that if you can get past three, you have a good chance of winning. Usually, when I tell them that, they try to eat them as fast as they can, but then the heat catches up with them and they’re pounding the table, tapping out.”

Making the cut

After meals like these, burning some calories might be in order. Not far from Bad Boyz Bistro, Bedford REC member Zachary Brouse hosts the Pennsylvania Lumberjack Championships and Outdoor Show at Camp Living Waters in Schellsburg.

Sponsored by Stihl Timbersports, the show draws thousands of spectators each August, all eager to see who among the hundreds of competitors is the best lumberjack — or jill. Athletes from all over test their strength, precision and speed in a number of events — from ax throwing to pole climbing — for the chance to win more than $20,000 in prizes.
 

“If no one was there, it would be quite boring,” jokes Brouse, owner of Brouse Forestry & Tree Care, Inc. “It’s very rewarding to see [the event] supported.

“People come out in full force every year. At competitions, we interact with the crowd, demonstrate wearing PPE (personal protective equipment), invite people to see our tools, answer their questions and get them involved in some way.”

Brouse, an arborist and forester, picked up his degree in forestry from the Allegheny College of Maryland, but his love of all things outdoorsy goes back to growing up at his father’s sawmill business. His love of the woods — and his competitive drive to chop them down — have taken him to 35 states across the U.S., several Canadian provinces and even to Sydney, Australia, to prove his chops as a lumberjack. A father of two, he brings his daughter and son along whenever he can.

“Lots of other competitors have kids they bring along, so our kids become friends with their kids,” he says. “My daughter has been to 19 or 20 different states that she wouldn’t have had a chance to visit otherwise.”

Because the show is family-oriented, Brouse doesn’t charge admission. This year, the Bedford County event celebrates its 10th anniversary, Aug. 8-10.

“It’s for and funded by the community,” he says. “People come in and enjoy the competition and can spend their money on the community vendors supporting the event.”

CUTTING AND CHOPPING: The Pennsylvania Lumberjack Championships and Outdoor Show in Bedford County draws thousands of spectators each August, all eager to see who will be the best lumberjack — or jill. Athletes test their strength, precision and speed in a number of events for the chance to win more than $20,000 in prizes. (Photo by Daryl Connor Thompson)
 

The thrill of the (rattlesnake!) hunt

In northern Pennsylvania, crowds of all ages gather for an entirely different spectacle: rattlesnake hunts. 

Of the numerous hunts there, Adams Electric Cooperative member Bill Wheeler coordinates the lion’s share of them, stretching from Cameron County to Wyoming County and including territory served by Mansfield-based Tri-County REC, Forksville-based Sullivan County REC, and Wysox-based Claverack REC.

Like lumberjack competitions, rattlesnake hunts are the center-pieces of large community gatherings, Wheeler says. In Wyoming County, for example, the Noxen hunt is part of a five-day, carnival-like atmosphere, complete with fireworks and live bands. In other communities, the hunts will pair with mountain-men competitions, black powder demonstrations, and wildlife educational programs, and proceeds go to local sportsmen clubs or volunteer fire companies.

“Rattlesnakes have always been a spectacle — everyone is fascinated by snakes — and we use that as a hook to bring in people to spend their money on a good cause,” says Wheeler, who has been coordinating hunts since the 1980s. “When it first started, it was all just hunting, then it became a contest … and then it became a good way to get [people] together.”

While licensed hunters may harvest one snake per year, snake-hunting competitions are catch-and-release. Each participating hunter — whether it’s in Sinnemahoning, Noxen, Cross Fork or Monroeton — can submit a single snake caught within a 30-mile radius for evaluation (if it’s a two-person team, that means eight snakes total, which nets 10 bonus points toward the champion title). While the longest and heaviest snake is generally a shoo-in for the winner, some hunts also recognize snakes with the most rattles.

Wade Graham, a former member of Sullivan County REC, won the Sinnemahoning Sportsmen’s Club teams championship hunt last year. He has been hunting snakes for more than 30 years, and since 2021, his wife, Jessica, has joined him.

“It takes up a lot of time, but we really enjoy being outdoors together,” says Graham, a health, safety and environmental representative for Cudd Pressure Control, Inc. “When we handle [the snakes], we’re very careful with them. If you’re very calm and not aggressive with them, they stay pretty calm and docile. Very rarely do we have one strike at us. We enjoy handling them … when we’re done hunting, we return them to the same spot we found them.”

But the competition makes it that much sweeter.

“We ended up winning the Gallagher Award, which was for a team of a male and female, and that was a turning point for Jessica, because she wanted to hunt for the whole season after that,” Graham says. “In 2022, we went out to four different hunts, and Jessica brought back four snakes, and we went on to win the teams state championship for 2022, 2023 and 2024.

“We really love doing this; it’s one of our favorite hobbies,” he adds. “Whenever the winter ends, it’s all we’re thinking about.”